Your lifestyle could kill you

POSTEDJune 27, 2009 6:10 p.m.

If helping people to avoid health problems is the purpose of recent Journal articles regarding the H1N1 “pandemic,” then please share these numbers with your readers.Over 2 million Americans die each year; 720,000 die from heart disease, 505,000 die from cancer, and 144,000 die of vascular disease (largely strokes). These three causes account for three fourths of all deaths.For every 100 cancer deaths, 30 are caused by tobacco, 30 are caused by diet/obesity, five by sedentary lifestyle, and three by alcohol consumption. This means that at least 68 percent of all cancers are caused by lifestyle choices. This also means that most cancer is preventable!Smoking kills 400,000 people per year and environmental smoke kills 50,000 people per year, which totals 450,000 deaths per year caused by tobacco.Approximately 180,000 deaths per year are caused by hospital iatrogenesis (mistakes) and 140,000 die from prescription medications, totaling 320,000 deaths from medical care.Over 300,000 die due to too much fat in the diet and another 100,000 due to alcohol consumption. Therefore, over 50 percent of all U.S. deaths each year are caused by lifestyle choices.This, I believe, constitutes a “pandemic.”— David Dubyak